This disclosure relates generally to a door structure for a building opening, and more particularly to a slide/swing patio door with a sliding portion and a hinged portion.
Building openings typically have door structures to allow ingress and egress to the building. In residential buildings one such door structure for an opening is adjacent to a balcony or patio and is typically referred to as a patio door. The usual arrangement for such door structures provides a fixed panel portion and a sliding panel portion. The panels typically include a single glass pane or a plurality of glass panes. It is known that even though the opening in the building spans the width of the two panels of the patio door, only one panel width is movable, I.e. the sliding panel portion. In another arrangement, the patio door is provided with two swinging panel portions. Each panel portion, or door, is hinged at the door frame and latched in the middle of the opening, typically to a post or column fixed in the middle of the building opening. In either case the open space for ingress or egress of a person, furniture, boxes, or the like is limited to a single panel portion width.
Thus, there is a need to provide a door structure that will allow access to the entire building opening. There is a further need to provide a patio door that does not obstruct ingress or egress through the full building opening. There is an additional need for a patio door that can slide and swing to a selected position and provide ingress and egress to a building.
One embodiment of the invention relates to a slide/swing patio door including a frame having a first panel pivotally mounted on the frame and a second panel slidingly mounted in the frame in a plane adjacent to the first panel. The first and second panels selectively move out of the frame around a pivot of the first panel. Another embodiment includes a latch to couple the first panel and the second panel together before the panels can be moved around the pivot. An additional embodiment provides a lock pin mounted on the first panel configured to engage a box staple mounted on the frame. In addition, another embodiment further includes a guide mounted on the first panel aligned to engage the second panel, wherein the second panel is guided along side the first panel and supported by the guide on the first panel during movement around the pivot.
There is also provided a method of opening and closing a patio door comprising a first panel and a second panel mounted in a frame, with the first panel pivotally mounted in the frame and second panel slidingly mounted in the frame, in a plane adjacent to the first panel. The method comprises the steps of sliding the second panel, toward the first panel until the two panels are substantially congruent. Then moving the first and second panel out of the frame around a pivot of the first panel a selected distance. Maintaining the first and second panel in the moved out position for a selected period time. Then moving the first and second panel back into the frame around the pivot of the first panel and sliding the second panel away from the first panel until the two panels are substantially incongruent.